The Controller
by squirrel2
Summary: <html><head></head>A mysterious force is controlling Jester in order to get revenge.  Gunther vs. Jester, J/J, J/G</html>
1. Chapter 1

The Controller

**Disclaimer: I, squirrellevel, do not own Jane and the Dragon or any of its characters, only any characters that are not part of the series.**

Chapter 1

Dark clouds were circling above in the sky, similar to vultures, and added a depressing mood to the already gloomy day. Fog had reined in Kippernium for the last few days, darkening everyone's mood, even Pepper's. The new malicious-appearing clouds only contributed to this feeling. No animals seemed to be present, though they may have just been hiding in fear of the frightening weather. The days before these had been magnificent summer days, with songbirds chirping happily to each other and valley children playing games. Now, in these last few days, it was almost as if a new, dark force was present in the kingdom. Something was certainly amiss.

But even so, our favorite jingle-hatted boy was roaming through the forest, in search of ideas for his new ballad. The King wanted a happy, cheerful ballad to bring up his mood, but all Jester could think of were gloomy and depressing songs. Songs of lost love, which he seemed to coming up with more than often now a days. _Probably because of Jane_, he began to think but then forced himself to stop. There was no need to make himself even more depressed on this already murky day. But he couldn't stop himself. All he could think about was Jane. He had recently asked Jane to court him, and she had accepted, for she knew of his feelings for her and that it would break his heart if she said no. At first she had really liked their strolls in the courtyard together. But Gunther had started acting so good towards her. Jester was afraid Gunther was stealing her away from him. _Bad Jester, bad_, he scolded himself.

He wanted to be Jane's love so badly, but the determined knight-in-training was still acting hesitant towards him, even though they were courting. She was going to finish her training without any distractions, she had said. But Jester was skeptical. As Gunther was now acting friendlier and friendlier towards her, she seemed to enjoy his presence more and more. Jester suspected that as he matured, Gunther begin to have romantic feelings towards Jane_. Why would Jane ever want me when Gunther is much stronger and braver?_ Jester thought to himself.

He continued his walk through the strange yet familiar feeling woods. They were the same trees Jester always strolled past, but they seemed different in a way Jester couldn't put words to. Which was strange in and of its self, for Jester could always put a word to something. And he was always able to cheer someone up, including himself, even on the worst of days. Something was definitely not right.

The blue boy (both in color and feeling) considered going back to the castle, but then thought, _Stop being such a coward!_

Just as he had finished his thought, something moved behind him. The fearful juggler whirled around, causing his hat to come off, and surveyed the setting. He hadn't heard any animal movement previously and didn't see any as he looked behind him. Carefully, he stooped to the ground to pick up his hat and tried to casually place it back on his head. _You can fool other people, but not yourself_, he thought. No matter what he did, he was still cringing with fear. After some minutes had passed, the jingle boy resumed to his walking, deciding not to go to the castle. If he could have known what was about to happen to him, he would have run back to the castle as fast as his skinny legs would take him.

Once again Jester sensed the movement. He again whirled around, then decided it was nothing, and continued walking. For the next few moments he pondered until he tripped.

It wasn't unusual for him to trip, for he was constantly in deep thought. But when he regained his posture and looked at the ground under him, he found that it was flat. There was nothing there to trip over.

The bewildered boy stood up and prepared to run. He waited for a few moments, and then let off his guard. There was peace and quiet, except for the gentle rumbling of thunder in the distance.

Then there was a spark. It was slight, but Jester felt it. He expected there to be the sound of thunder, and then realized it wasn't lightning. It was something else. He once again could not put a word to it, but he was sure he had felt it before. The spark felt like a memory.

There it was again, and stronger this time, almost as if it were getting closer. Jester was so engulfed with fear that he was petrified, literally, and could not get his body to move.

The source of the spark was getting closer and closer; Jester could feel the heat it was giving off. As it continued towards him, Jester began to feel the memory again. Then he realized what it was. Magic. _Dark_ Magic.

Just as he began to comprehend what was happening, he heard an eerie voice. Jester grabbed hold of himself and started running. After a few seconds of it, he halted sharply. He did not mean to, for he seemed to no longer have control of his body. Almost as if someone else was in him, he started walking towards the voice, no matter how hard he resisted.

Jester suddenly regretted not learning Decent Magic. Everyone was capable of performing the simple spells, but Jester had always stayed away from magic, for he thought it dangerous. And Jester did not like danger. But as he was being pulled closer and closer to the voice, he wished he had known enough magic to resist it.

He tried chanting spells. "Relinquo, relinquo."

Nothing happened.

"Ignis, uti tu me."

Again, nothing happened.

Jester had never felt this scared in his life. Even when enemy knights had invaded the castle, he had not been as scared as he was now.

Then the voice uttered a spell Jester understood. "Victimae meae."

**Note: The words Jester and the strange voice say are in Latin. The last thing that the voice says (Victimae meae) means "My victim."**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**One month earlier…**

"Why don't you give up already?" Gunther was beginning to tire, so much that he could not come up with a mean-spirited nickname for Jane. The redheaded knight was much more tired than the raven-haired one, but she would never give up. Never. She would keep fighting until she dropped. She would probably keep fighting even _after_ she dropped. Gunther knew this, and he did not have nearly as much determination as Jane did. He had not worked to become a squire like she had; his father had just paid the money. But Jane would let nothing stop her.

"Never." Her voice could hardly be heard. The girl was now fumbling with her sword and her footing was awkward. Gunther was getting the upper hand, which he took with pleasure. But she would not let him win. She tried her best to ignore her aching muscles, and came back with as much force as she could muster. Gunther was much stronger than Jane; thus he took the upper hand back as soon as he had lost it. Jane was disappointed, but she pushed that disappointment back into the same part of her mind she put surrender.

Suddenly the world turned into a blur. Jane blinked multiple times, and after a moment, she could see clearly again. She could sense blackness coming from the back of her eyes. _No! _she thought. _I will not give in!_ But her body betrayed her, and she fell to the ground with a thump.

"Jane!" Gunther threw his sword aside and crutched beside the unconscious squire. Her eyes were open, and he thought he saw a trace of determination still in them. He started shaking her, trying to release her from her unconscious state. _I pushed her too far_, thought Gunther guiltily. After a few minutes, Jane awoke, and tried to sit up. Her muscles tensed, though, and she fell back down, too tired to move.

Sir Theodore had seen the event from above, and was racing to the practice yard to help his fallen squire. Jane reentered unconsciousness, so the knights took her to her room where she could rest.

Nightfall came and Jane had still not awoken. Dragon had watched her from the window the entire day and had not yet noticed her stir. It was not until the next day when Jane woke up.

She was glad Jester's smile was the first thing she saw when she woke up. She could tell he was very relieved to see she was alright. "Jane, you're alright…" the jingle-headed boy trailed off as he was overcome by embarrassment for caring so much. Jane hated it when people worried about her.

"Fool," she said kindly.

"Jane," Jester ventured, hoping she would not snap at him when he completed the statement.

"Yes?"

"Please just, be careful."

He stared into her kind, green eyes as she said, "I promise."

The surprised clown had nothing to say but, "Thank you." Jester figured that he might have been the happiest person in the world at that moment. He continued feeling happy throughout the rest of the day as he knew Jane was alright.

Later that day, Jane had reported to Sir Theodore of her tiredness and was dismissed from the day's tasks. Instead she sat up in the top of her tower, studying runes with dragon. Jester saw the two up there and smiled, happy that Jane was recovering.

It was later in the evening that Jester's mood was put down. At dinner, Gunther had sat in the Throne Room with everyone else, writing. All of the members of the castle, except for Jane, who had gone to bed early, were gathered there, listening to Jester's ballads. Gunther had not been paying attention to Jester, but more to his writing. Once the partyers had dispersed, even the King and Queen, Jester had walked over to where Gunther had been sitting, for the careless squire had left his paper there.

On it Jester read:

_My love,_

_Will you love me as I love you?_

_Or will you fall for the jester _

_As rain falls from the sky?_

_If so I will cry,_

_Though I've never cried before,_

_For without you I'm nothing._

_Jane, _

_Would you ever accept me?_

_Even if I sang for you _

_And begged before you on my knees?_

_Or do you just hate me so much_

_That you would look at me with disgust_

_And kick dirt in my face_

_When I proposed my love?_

_Please, my love,_

_Accept me for who I am._

_Even though I have called you all those names._

_I didn't mean them, I promise,_

_And I knight's word is to be kept._

_So it shall_

_For without you I'm nothing._

Jester did not find this poem touching the slightest bit, for at that moment he knew he had a rival.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Jester's thoughts were awhirl. He could never imagine Gunther being in love with Jane. Jester knew he was the right one for her. He just knew it. But how would Jane react if she found out Gunther was in love with her? Or did she already know? Jester was filled with jealousy iof Gunther and doubt in himself, and very much wanted to rip the paper to shreds. He did not, though, and simply laid it back on the table so Gunther would not suspect anyone of reading it once he returned, remembering he had left it there. Jester could think of nothing else than to go to his room and sit in relaxing serenity, until he could gather his storming thoughts. He accidently fell asleep, for the evening was approaching, and stayed asleep until the morning, missing dinner.

That new day, Jane woke up with the usual amount of fiery energy. She got up and brushed her unruly red hair, and then set to the breakfast table to get something to eat before patrol. Pepper already had a bowl of porridge waiting for her, as she had arrived later than Rake and Smithy. But not as late as Jester, who was nowhere to be seen. She quickly finished her food and then found Dragon snoozing on the wall.

"Dragon! Time for patrol!"

Dragon turned a bit, but did not open his lazy eyes. "Just a bit longer…"

Jane folded her arms across her chest. "Enemies of the court do not wait until after morning to invade the kingdom."

"Fine, fine." agreed the dragon, and he flew from the wall and landed clumsily in the yard. Jane mounted the green fire-breather and readied herself for flight. They took off, and Jester, emerging from his room, caught a brief glimpse of the redhead. He knew he loved her, and had thought she would pick him, but now as Gunther became competition, the jingler was not sure which of them Jane would pick.

Jester saw that Gunther had too seen Jane fly off, and now had a soft look in his eyes. Jester's look turned from one of wanting to one of jealousy as he watched the stronger, braver boy walk towards the Knight's Quarters. _Jane would never fall for him_, thought Jester, though he did not believe a word of it.

Jane arrived back to the castle with Dragon at midday. He had said goodbye to her and then flew of in search of some cows. She came up to the table where Rake and Smithy sat talking about plants, across from Jester who had his head down.

Jane felt uneasy sitting next to Jester, for she figured his sadness was either caused by her or Gunther. It was the only seat left, and even if it wasn't, she knew it would hurt his feelings not to sit by him. He looked up at her as she sat next to him and gave her a small smile. She smiled back, but then he just put his head back down. Jane sighed.

Pepper then came out of the kitchens carrying a large plate of fish. Rake immediately stood up to help her, and she blushed as his hand touched hers. Jane was surprised to see Jester just glare at them. The two then set down the fish and Smithy and Jane began eating. Rake too, once he had gotten his face to return to its normal color. Jester just sat there with his head down, and Pepper, who did not mind asking people what was on their mind, as long as they were her friends, asked, "Jester, what is the matter? Does your stomach hurt?"

Jester, recalling the last time Pepper had treated him for a stomachache (she had used a disgusting concoction that had only made him vomit more), shook his head. Besides, it wasn't his stomach that was bothering him anyway. "I'm just feeling down."

"You still need to eat."

Jester gave in and started to eat, but did not eat much, for Rake, Smithy, and Jane had almost already finished it. The rest of lunch was silent, for the others did not want to speak when Jester was not making jokes. Midday was then over and they all returned to their duties, Jester's being standing by the table with his lute, trying to come up with a tune to play to the King.

From his place in the gardens, Jester could see Jane's practice against Gunther. The redhead was trying to conserve her energy so she wouldn't faint like last time. Jester, as far away as he was, could still see a warm smile spread across Gunther's face. Gunther was in love with her.

Jester heard Jane call, "What are you smiling about Gunther? The fact that you're losing?"

Gunther dropped his smile a bit, perhaps embarrassed. "Nothing," he replied.

Jane frowned, but then figured he was trying to fool her. The raven-haired boy lightly hit upon her sword, giving Jane the chance to come back with force. "What are…you…up to?" asked Jane between breaths. She was tiring even though Gunther was going easy on her. She expected for him to come out of his shell and brutally come back at her and knock her to the ground. That never came. Sir Theodore, satisfied with the afternoon's practice, dismissed Gunther and worked privately with Jane on her endurance. Gunther strolled to the kitchens to get a bite to eat. Passing Jester, he said coldly, "Nice tune."

Jester nodded with a glare. They both knew they were enemies.

Gunther came back out of the kitchens a moment later carrying an apple, but neither spoke nor glanced at Jester. He just walked past and headed to the Knight's quarters. Jester decided to instead move his station to the swings, where he could watch Jane practice.

Jane, seeing him as she ran laps around the practice yard, smiled and then returned to concentrating on her work. Sir Theodore nodded to the blue boy and gave him a look that said, "You can be here, but don't distract her." Jester nodded back and took a seat on one of the swings. He played his lute quietly, trying to compose a song.

Once Jane had finished her running, Sir Theodore fenced with her, trying to build up her strength. She was instructed to keep blocking but not to lunge. Within half of an hour, Jane began to tire, but did not quit, despite what had happened last time. Sir Theodore, seeing her tire, halted, and Jane did the same.

"You must know your limits Jane," Sir Theodore said. "For if you do not, you will collapse in the battlefield and be left to the mercy of your enemies."

Jane nodded. She knew that, but could not bring herself to give up. Sir Theodore left her to rest and she went over to Jester. "Feeling better?"

Jester shook his head without looking up. He concentrated on his lute. Jane sighed. "What is wrong?"

"Nothing."

"I do not believe you. Something is definitely wrong. Did I do something?"

Jester looked up at her with sad, silver eyes. "No, Jane, you didn't do anything."

Jane thought this to mean more than it was simply put. _Have I been neglecting him?_ she wondered. _No. He certainly has been up and down lately._ Wanting to end the conversation, Jane simply said, "I hope you feel better," and walked away.

Jester sighed and continued sitting there, plucking the strings of his lute.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Jester knew he may be overreacting, for he and Jane had been friends for years, but as she sensed her presence slowly drifting away from him as she left the practice yard, he also thought that she was being rather indifferent with him. She had not tried to get to the bottom of his sadness. _Do I expect too much of her? Am I being selfish?_ Jester stood up from his place on the swings, feeling very self-involved and angry. He felt bitter when thinking of Gunther, whom he was developing a hatred for born from jealousy. He continued the rest of that day in silence, not wishes to express his problems with anyone, for he felt no one could understand. He attended dinner, remained silent, and was as pleased as he could be at that time (which was not very much) for Pepper had already began her nighttime work in the kitchens and could not bother him once again. He then headed for bed as they all did and took some time to fall asleep, for he was too emotional. Jester hated that his emotions were causing him to be like that and decided right before he drifted off into welcoming sleep that he would have to do something to ensure his relationship with Jane. He would have to make her hate Gunther.

That night when Gunther readied himself for bed, thinking of Jester, who he knew was in love with Jane as he was, he decided that he would have to make Jane hate Jester in order or her to accept him. Neither of them had knowledge that the other was making the same decision. They did both know that Jane could not make her decision if she did not have solid feelings for one of them and none for the other. They could not let Jane have the slightest romantic interest in the other, and they just hoped that in the end Jane would not hate both of them.

Jane awoke from bed the next morning thinking about Jester. Lately, he had been up, then down and she wondered why, though she figured she knew the answer. Love. Jane had always known Jester had feelings for her, but did not feel ready to show them back. Now, as she was thirteen, she wondered if she should say something to him. But she didn't have the gut. She had the gut to confront an army, but not to confront her friend.

She got out of bed and brushed her hair, as she did every morning. Then she returned to her bed to sit on, waiting for Dragon to arrive. She did not feel like going to breakfast. Dragon soon flew to her window and asked, "Jane, are you up yet?"

"Yes, Dragon," she replied. Jane opened the door and came out of her room. She mounted the big lizard and they flew off.

Jester watched them fly off from the courtyard like he did every morning.

Later that morning, Jester performed his new song for the King. Gunther, who had been assigned to stand guard there, stood there glaring at him. It was a song about a lost adventurer who found their hidden love. Gunther knew it was about Jane.

The King and Queen applauded when he was finished and Jester bowed. He waited until they left the room to take his leave. Gunther stopped him.

Jester noticed Gunther tightening his grip on his sword, but did not shy away. He looked up at him and asked, "What?"

Gunther glared back at him. "Just that you could work on your songs a bit more. They are all starting to sound the same now."

"Who made you conductor? You know nothing about music."

"I know more than you think."

"Then show me."

Gunther dropped his glare for a second. "What?"

"Show me your musical talent."

Gunther put the glare back on his face. "Fine then."

Jane, who had come back from patrol, was hiding in the doorway, intrigued.

Gunther took a breath and then began singing a song he had heard Jester sing before. In a high (compared to his speaking voice) and cracking voice, he sang:

_Oh star, oh star,_

_Come out tonight,_

_And grant me the wishes_

_I ask you._

_Oh star, oh star,_

_I come to you,_

_When I need help_

_And cannot seem to find it._

_Oh star, oh star,_

_Please do not ignore me,_

_For I have nothing to give you_

_Except for a "Thank you."_

_Oh star, oh star,_

_I shall thank you,_

_With all of my heart,_

_For that is the best gift of all._

Jane had to pinch herself so hard it bled in order to keep from laughing. Jester, however, did break out laughing. "Call that 'musical talent,' do you?"

Gunther was very embarrassed, and so he said, "Well I can fight much better than you," and he pushed Jester to the ground.

Jane gasped.

Jester let out a scream-wail as his head hit the ground and began to bleed.

Jane ran away from the scene, knowing if she intruded it would only make things worse.

Gunther left Jester lying on the floor bleeding.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Up in her room, Jane tried to think. Gunther and Jester were obviously having some problems, and Jane figured Gunther had something to do with why Jester was so down. _Are they jealous of each other?_ Jane thought. Gunther was strong and could fight, but Jester was witty and could sing and dance.

Jane looked down at the practice yard from her window. Jester was sitting on the swing, holding a wet cloth to his head. Pepper had given it to him to stop the bleeding and swelling. She sighed. The last thing she needed to deal with was those two fighting over her. As she thought that, she became angry. Jane did not want people to fight over her; she could take care of herself. The squire figured she would get married in the future, but she couldn't stand them arguing over her as if she were theirs. _I do not belong to anyone_, she thought defiantly. Their fighting would only make her forthcoming choice harder.

Jane had also never thought Gunther loved her. He treated her so poorly, calling her names and such. And then he has the nerve to fight with Jester over her. Jane's anger was increasing.

The squire left her messy room up in the tower and ran down to the practice yard, grabbing a wooden sword on the way. Upon being in Jester's presence, she went up to him. "Are you alright? I heard you got hurt." Jane pretended she had not witnessed it.

Jester looked up at her with eyes that betrayed jealousy, frustration, and determination. Jane hated the uneasy feeling she got from him. "I accidently fell and hit my head."

_Liar!_ Jane tried to erase the anger from her eyes. She couldn't stand liars. She had once been one, but had given it up after the incident with the offer from another kingdom. She had promised never to lie again, unless it was absolutely necessary, as the Knight's Code forbade it. But then she realized pretending she had not witnessed the fight was a lie. Too overwhelmed, she pushed the thought out of her head.

"I hope you feel better," she said formally and she headed over to the practice dummy. _I hate this!_ she thought. _Now I am uncomfortable around Jester. Will I really lose my friend over this silliness?_ The angry squire hit her sword across the dummy with some force, sending it to the ground and then up again. As it came back at her, she knocked it again. She had hit it too much on the right, so the unbalanced dummy came at her brutally from her left, where she was not expecting it. Jane ducked the uppermost swinging object, but failed to move her leg away from the bottom one. It struck her shin and she yelped. She barely got over her embarrassment in time to block the next swing.

Jane realized as she fought the practice dummy that it was too predictable. She wanted to fight a real person. Few of the knights were present at the castle, and Jane realized there was only one person she could practice against at that time. Gunther.

Jane felt too angry to fight him, but by coincidence, he was advancing towards the practice yard, ready for combat. Jane continued fighting the dummy as if she did not sense his presence. She was too distracted by her emotions, and her strike lacked coordination. The dummy hit her head and sent her down to the ground.

"Jane!" Gunther and Jester shouted her name simultaneously.

Jane tried to get up but could not, for she was far too dizzy. Gunther ran over to her to help her get up. Jane was furious once he touched her, trying to help her up, but once she looked into his eyes, her anger subsided, and was replaced with comfort.

In the corner of her eye, Jane could see Jester's horrified face.

**Note: I wrote this while listening to Mozart's Symphony 25 in G Minor. Kinda random, I know. I haven't worked on this story in a while so please review.**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Jane, embarrassed, pushed Gunther away and got up on her own. Just as she stood up, Jester reached her. "Jane, are you alright?" He ignored Gunther's hateful glare.

Jane's emotions were stirred and compressed in her, emotions of anger, embarrassment, and confusion. She could not hold it in any longer.

"Back off, both of you!"

They backed up at once.

Jane's face was almost as red as her hair.

"I am a knight and can take care of myself. You two are falling over me like rocks from a cliff. Leave me to my training and keep your quarrels away." She immediately regretted saying that.

Both Gunther and Jester, hurt, began walking away. Jane wanted to tell them to come back and to apologize, but could not bring herself to. At that moment she realized she had feelings for both of them.

Jane now turned her anger on herself. _Stop it! I do not like Gunther, I do not!_ she thought. _Focus on your training!_ But convincing oneself of something false is difficult, and Jane did not succeed. A mix of emotions, she once again headed to her room.

When dinnertime came, Pepper, Rake, and Smithy were surprised to not see Jane or Jester there.

"Something's wrong." Pepper looked off into the distance.

"Pepper, you are overreacting," Smithy said. "Jane and Jester have not been at dinner before. Jane is probably studying dragon runes with Dragon and Jester is probably composing a song."

"No…" Pepper continued staring in the distance towards the woods.

"Pepper, are you alright?" asked Rake.

"I sense something amiss in the woods."

"I didn't know you were a fortune teller," teased Smithy.

"I'm serious, something's not right."

"Maybe you should see Sir Theodore about it," said Rake.

"It's probably nothing," said Pepper, turning back towards the kitchen. She knew something was not right.

Jane decided she would patrol the woods. Too caught up in her own emotions, she would not be able to patrol with dragon, so she would go alone. Since villagers had reported sensing something odd in the woods, she decided to dress herself in armor, for she figured intruders lurked in the woods. Jane had fought off intruders many times before and was not fearful, but decided to put on her armor all the same.

Once she was dressed and armed, she headed out of her room and to the stairs leading to the practice yard. Dragon stopped her.

"Why are you dressed in armor?"

Jane jumped at the sound of his voice and whirled around. "Dragon! Do not sneak up on me like that."

"Sorry," he said. "But why are you dressed in armor?"

"I'm going for patrol in the woods."

"Without me?"

"I just need some alone time." She went up to him and gave him a small hug, showing she was not angry with him. Then she went down the stairs to the yard.

Once she came to the stables, Smithy asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, I just need to go for patrol. Alone."

"Are you angry with Dragon?"

"No, now please do not ask any more questions."

Smithy, who tended to keep to himself, just muttered something about saddles and went to saddle Cleva. A minute later, he came back.

Jane mounted the horse and set off. She soon reached the gates, and from there headed to the woods. Now alone, her emotions came rushing back. _Why must they fight over me?_ She thought as she rode through the woods. _Both Gunther and Jester know I hate it, so why don't they back off?_ Then she wondered if she was too direct to them when she had told them to back off. _I do not want this to destroy my friendship with Jester. Gunther is…alright, but why do they have to fight?_

As Jane rode farther into the woods, she began to have an uneasy feeling. She felt like she was being watched. _Probably just intruders_, she thought. But she felt something else. Evil. All of Jane's anger disappeared as she became frightened. Despite her determination, she knew Dark Magic was nothing to mess with, and she directed Cleva back to the castle. As Jane rode back, she wondered if the Dark Magic was what the villagers had sensed.

**Note: Hope ya like it! As always, please review.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The next morning, Jane prepared herself to meet the king. She always wanted to look her best when speaking before the king; the reason she did not know herself. But in any event, Jane made sure she was bathed and clothed properly, and she took time to brush her unruly red curls, that after being washed, had entered a state of complete wildness (even wilder than its usual state). Dragon had, of course, poked his large head through the window and made a comment, which Jane ignored, as she was too occupied with preparing her announcement to the King. She finished relatively quickly, and upon doing so, headed out of her room and into the already bustling outdoors.

Outside, Jane saw Smithy pushing in a cart of metal and wood from the market, which Gunther was "helping" him pull. The raven-haired squire was barely raising a sweat. Rake had the job of planting the new trees for the castle, and Jester was helping him unload, carry, and plant the trees into the moist ground.

Pepper was preparing food for a banquet coming up soon; Jane did not know this by seeing her, for Pepper was inside and not visible from Jane's standpoint, but Jane had already known it was coming up.

Down the steps she descended, heading for the garden in which she would speak with the king. She waved to Rake and Jester on the way. Rake waved back, smiling, "Hello, Jane!" while Jester only looked up at her, and then returned to his work. Jane sighed. _He must be angry with me about telling him to back off_, she thought.

The king was already there, waiting. From the look on his face, she knew she was late. "Jane," said the king. "You are late, are you not? A knight must be punctual."

Jane bowed upon entering his presence and replied, "I am sorry Your Majesty."

The king nodded, accepting her apology, and continued. "I hear you have a report for me."

"Yes, I do. Yesterday I was patrolling the woods and encountered what I think the villagers were afraid of."

"The intruders?"

"I doubt there are any intruders," she said as the king's face became worried. Clearly he had no idea what there could be besides intruders. "I sensed Dark Magic."

Upon her voice speaking those words, the king's expression became one of immense worry, confusion, and anger. "I shall speak to Theodore, for I have no idea of how and when to approach the predicament. Thank you for reporting this to me, Squire Jane."

Her leave having been given, she bowed and turned back in the direction of her room, where she waiting for a certain green somebody to arrive. Within minutes, she spotted him flying in the distance towards the castle. He saw her and quickened the pace in which his wings flapped, and landed on the wall seconds later. "Good morning, short-life. Talking with your king, have you?"

"Yes, Dragon. And about something important."

"And that important something would be…"

Jane grimaced as she spoke the words that named the horrible thing. "Dark Magic."

"Dark _what_?"

Jane, confused, said, "Magic, Dragon. Have you never heard of it?"

"Yes, I have heard of it. Short-lives talk about it."

"Well, Dark Magic is something very bad."

"How bad?"

Jane grimaced once again. "Worse than you could ever imagine."

Dragon, looking down, decided to change the subject. "Shall we go on patrol?"

"Certainly," Jane replied, and they flew off once she had mounted onto him.

Jester looked up from his work in the gardens to see her fly off. He was somewhat angry, but mostly heartbroken, for he couldn't stand her being angry at him. Had he pushed on her too much? No. So why did she snap back? Jester pondered for a second before coming upon the answer. Gunther. As he returned to his work, the blue boy was bluer than ever. And as he watched from his spot in the gardens Gunther come into the practice yard and begin practicing his swordsmanship, Jester became green with envy.

Rake, seeing Jester halt his work and glare towards the practice yard, asked, "Jester? What is wrong?"

Jester looked up at the towering gardener and said in a sarcastic, bitter voice, "Nothing. Everything's just wonderful."

Gunther noticed Jester glaring at him and returned the glare, harsher. Jester slightly raised the pitchfork he was using to loosen the soil as to make a threat. Gunther simply laughed to himself and returned to his practice. Jester, embarrassed, since obviously he would never defeat Gunther, even in his dreams, returned to his work as well, but with more force as he worked at the soil. Gunther would outmatch him in any physical fight, and they both knew it.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The following morning, Jane reluctantly fought Gunther in the practice yard. She was surprised, though, that he did not seem at all angry at her, and was lightly hitting his wooden sword on hers as he had the day Jane had collapsed. She remembered the event with embarrassment. But even in the last week, Jane's endurance had grown, and she was fighting for longer and longer now, even tiring Gunther. She had practiced her footwork as well, and was weaving around the other squire cleverly, attempting to confuse him, and knock him off balance. Gunther's footwork had improved immensely since the incident at the ball the year before. Upon remembering the ball, Gunther hoped that when the ball took place in a few weeks, Jane would wear a gown. He would not tease her. He would not embarrass her. He truly wanted to see how beautiful Jane would look in a dress. He could never tell her that, though. Not now. She was already annoyed at him, and would most likely not take a compliment like that kindly.

Jane was taking the upper hand from Gunther, who was tiring, not from the effort, but from boredom. She hit his sword with her own with as much force as she could, attempting to knock it from his strong hands. She doubted she would succeed, and backed off a bit when she realized she was using too much effort.

"Know your limits, Jane," she heard Sir Theodore call out. His voice was not very encouraging, for all he could think about was how to fight the Dark Magic.

Jester awoke rather late, and the first thing he saw, much against his delight, was Jane fighting Gunther. Gunther was smiling. No matter how much he wanted to look away from the battle, Jester found himself still watching, intrigued, their fighting skills, wishing he had them himself.

Upon seeing Jester watching him, Gunther grew fiercer, and began hitting his sword against the other squire's harder, more impressively. He added some more complex footwork, as to make Jester jealous.

_I have better footwork than you, Gunther_, Jester thought. _I dance._ Gunther now took the upper hand away from Jane, who was most disappointed to lose it. She figured he was trying to show Jester how he had more talent, and she was suddenly annoyed at him for trying to make her friend feel bad. Jane battled more fiercely, no matter how tired she was now feeling. She urged her feet to move along more smoothly and with more coordination. Gunther suddenly hit his sword against hers with more force than before, causing the redheaded knight to twist her body slightly to keep from losing her balance. Seeing her posture was more unstable, Gunther hit her sword once again to force her into a more uncomfortable position. Jane prepared to come out of the posture endangering her but was unable to, for Gunther was throwing her more and more off balance. Jane finally lost her balance and began to fall to the ground, but caught herself by kneeling.

Gunther was fighting her as she kneeled, her knee being dug into the ground. But he was not fighting with anger, but with excitement and joy. He could tell she was enjoying the battle as well. A good match was_ fun_. Jane forced herself up as she continued blocking his lunges. She could barely keep herself from breaking out laughing, with a snort or two, though she did not know why she felt like laughing. Perhaps it was the joy and excitement. Jane was no longer annoyed with Gunther at the moment.

Jester saw that both of them were enjoying the battle, and he sighed. _If only I could be a knight…_

Sir Theodore stopped them mid-fight, not because he saw Jane tiring, but because they were to study for a test they would be having soon, and he explained that as they concluded their battling.

"What sort of a test is it?" asked Jane, nodding.

"A test of loyalty," replied the old knight. "But the scheduling of the test has been thrown off, for the Guard is still trying to decide when and how to act on the Dark Magic problem. The test will most likely be delayed, but that does not mean the two of you should restrain from studying."

An idea sparked within Gunther.

Jane thanked Sir Theodore as he handed her a book to study from, and Gunther had to awake from his little world for a moment to take the book from Sir Theodore. Jane headed off to the fountain, where she would feel most comfortable studying. Gunther headed off into the direction of the bench in the gardens, where he sat and opened the book to begin studying.

Jane, able to see Gunther's place in the gardens, sat in awe. Gunther was actually _studying_, something she did not think him capable of. After a moment or two of staring, she returned to the book in her lap in which she had been reading out of.

Once Jane and Gunther had left the practice yard, Jester felt alone, even though Smithy was there working, and went to his room to ponder, feel sorry for himself, and compose the songs for the king that he would be performing in the evening.

The rest of the day went along rather quietly, for the squires had spent hours studying, most of the staff had been working, Sir Theodore had been in his office, Sir Ivon had been napping, and Dragon had been napping as well. Once the sun began to set, Rake, Smithy, Jane, and Jester headed to the benches, where they would eat the dinner Pepper has been preparing since midday. Jane sat next to Jester, as she always did, despite how uneasy she felt towards him at the moment.

Rake was speaking of vegetables when Pepper came from the kitchen, carrying a platter of vegetables and a fish. Rake, Smithy, and Jane began eating it immediately, as they were all famished. Pepper gave Jester a look when she saw he was not eating, and Jester quickly joined in, not wanting a "stomachache remedy."

"Why don't you tell a joke, Jester?" Pepper asked, worriedly. "I haven't heard you tell one in so long."

Jester sighed, hit at one his bells, making them laugh, and said, "Two tarts were sitting by a fire. One said 'It's hot in here!' and the other looked at him with an expression of pure terror and said 'Oh no! A talking tart!'"

The ones assembled at the bench laughed, mainly to cheer Jester up, for that joke was not nearly as funny as his usual ones. Jester knew his joke was not very funny, but did not feel like making any one laugh, and quickly left the table, saying, "I have to perform for the king now."

The next morning, Jane sat with Dragon up in the tower, studying dragon runes as she had promised him the previous day. They were working on a sentence of runes that Dragon had discovered in his cave, written by his father centuries ago. Jane had copied them onto the piece of paper they were now working from. Before them were four runes. The first one meant "dragon" as they had known for some time. The last one was the rune meaning "death" and they figured the sentence they were working on was an important message.

"Jane!"

Jane groaned as she heard Gunther's voice interrupting her from down below.

His voice higher compared to normal and cracking from the effort of yelling, Gunther said, "Come down here! I can't yell!"

Dragon laughed slightly at Gunther's cracking voice and moved his tail aside for Jane to go down to the yard. She went down the stairs from the tower and then down more stairs to enter the practice yard. "What is it?"

"Sir Theodore needs you for something. He-" Gunther stopped speaking when he noticed the piece of paper Jane was carrying. "What's that?"

Jane, offended, spat back, "None of your business!"

The runes were visible from the side of the paper Gunther was looking at, and he asked, "Do you know what all of them mean?"

Jane figured there was no harm in showing him the paper so she pointed to the first rune and then the last rune. "We know the first one means 'dragon' and the last one means 'death' but that's all we know."

"I know what the other two mean."

Jane, and Dragon who was listening from up in the tower, was astonished.

"The second one means 'drink,'" Gunther explained. "I've seen it at a lot of drinking stores. They use the dragon rune to be decorative. The third one means 'alcohol.' I've also seen that rune at drinking stores." Gunther, seeing Jane's strange look, quickly added, "Not that I drink! I've just gone on patrol over there and…" he trailed off.

"Dragon drink alcohol death," Jane said, almost to herself. "That must mean alcohol is poisonous to dragons!"

Dragon, hearing her statement, asked, "What's alcohol?"

"It's something people drink."

"Isn't it what they drink right before they start acting strange and deranged? Over 300 years I've seen many short-lives get 'drunk' off of that stuff. I have no intention to drink it."

"I guess your father wanted to make sure you knew it was poisonous." Turning back to Gunther, she said, "Thank you."

Gunther waved it off, trying to appear modest to impress her. "Anyway Sir Theodore just wanted me to tell you to be ready in five days for a mission you're going on. It's to find out more about the Dark Magic."

Gunther left now, leaving Jane and Dragon in the yard, astonished.

After midday had come and gone, Gunther was working alone in the yard; even Smithy was not there. He had been assigned to move barrels to the other side of the yard and to arrange them neatly, so Dragon would not knock them over. And since Smithy was helping Rake, Gunther also had to cart a barrow of metals to and from the stables, much to his disappointment.

Jester arrived in the yard, seeing Gunther. "Do you need some help?"

Gunther laughed as he rolled a heavy barrel across the yard. "As if you could manage it. You are too weak."

"No I'm not!"

Gunther stopped rolling and looked up. "Oh really?"

"Really."

He pushed the barrel over to Jester. "Help then. See how long you last."

Jester tried to push the barrel. It was heavy. Using as much effort as he could, Jester slowly pushed the barrel over to the other side of the yard. Once there, he tried to pull it off of its side. He could not.

Gunther laughed and merrily went over to where Jester was standing and pulled the barrel onto the side it was supposed to be on. "Luckily this is the last one. You couldn't even manage one. I've been pushing these things around for an hour."

Jester was very embarrassed, and tried hard to keep the redness from coming upon his face. Smithy, much to Jester's relief, came to the yard and said, "Thank you, Gunther. You may leave now. I'll take care of the rest."

Gunther walked away confidently.

Pushing the barrow of metal from the stables would be easier, so Jester decided to help Smithy.

In the evening, Rake, Smithy, Jane, and Jester all gathered for dinner.

As Pepper came from the kitchen with their food, Jester said, "I'm so exhausted!"

"Today was a hard day," Jane agreed.

"Certainly," said Pepper, setting down the plate. "I've been cooking all day for the banquet tomorrow."

"Smithy and I finally finished planting the trees and unloading all of the new dirt. Plus Dragon smashed some of the garden so I had to run around the market for hours to get new plants and then we had to replant an entire section of the garden," said Rake.

"And after that I had to cart metal back and forth and re-shoe all the horses," Smithy said.

"I had more endurance training," Jane told them. "I had to run around the forest for hours. The east forest; not where the Dark Magic is. Then I had archery training."

"What did you do, Jester?" asked Smithy.

Jester felt very embarrassed as he told them, "I only had to push a few barrels around and then I helped Smithy a bit cart the metal."

Dinner was finished in silence.

The next day, Jester awoke early, and headed down to the yard where he could play his lute in peace, with no Gunther to deal with. He had an hour or two to himself but soon morning came and the castle became that bustling place of work again. Jester had decided that after yesterday, he would work more around the castle. He promised Rake he would go to the market and get some plants for him. He left his lute by the swings.

Gunther had gone to the practice yard shortly after Jester to practice his swordsmanship. Seeing Jester's lute there and that no one was around, he headed over to it and picked it up. It was a beautiful instrument. Gunther sat down on the swing and held it like he had seen Jester do. He began plucking at it.

The first cord he tried did not sound very good, but he adjusted his finger to make it sound musical. Then he plucked another note. He was composing a song. Excited by the music, Gunther continued playing around with the notes, discovering that some sounded good with others, and some did not. He also found that he could make it quieter or louder.

"Do you want lessons?"

Gunther almost screamed as he saw Jester standing there. "When did you get here?"

"I see you got sucked into the music. I remembered I left my lute here so I came back."

Gunther, glared, stood up, and handed Jester his lute. "No, I do not want lessons. Music is for softies."

"You seem naturally talented at it."

"I said music is for softies." Gunther quickly left the yard, embarrassed.

Jane found the whole event interesting, as she had been watching it from her window.

Jester took his lute back to his room, and then headed back to the market.

Later that day, Gunther and Jane were practicing staves. Jane had decided not to tell Gunther she had seen him playing Jester's lute, as she wanted to spare him the embarrassment. So she battled him with fiery energy, and quickly took the upper hand. Almost as soon as the battle had started, Jane knocked Gunther's sword from his hand, as he was distracted.

"Biscuit weevil!" he said. Gunther had forgotten his promise to himself not to call Jane names.

Jane had not heard him call her a name in a while, but was not surprised. "It seems you are disarmed, beef brain."

Gunther had to keep his promise. "I'm sorry, Jane. I didn't mean to call you a name."

Now Jane was surprised. Astonished, even. Not knowing what else to say, Jane stumbled, "Uh, I forgive you, uh I didn't mean to call you a name either."

Gunther left, wanting to get away from the scene, and Jane just watched him leave, dumbfounded.

She did not see him the rest of the day.

When Jane woke up the next morning, Jester was the first thing she thought about. Perhaps she had dreamed about him. She knew he was still feeling hurt from when she had told him to back off. Jane made a decision.

She found Jester walking through a hallway, near the Throne Room, for he had just come out of the Royal Library. Jester knew she was walking behind him, but he pretended he did not notice.

She ran up to him and grabbed his arm. Jester let out an ow-scream-wail sort of noise with surprise. "Jane!"

Embarrassed, Jane said, "Sorry. I just wanted to apologize about telling you to back off a few days ago." Jane wanted to make Jester feel better, so she said, "I meant it at Gunther." It was partly true.

"Oh, uh, that's alright Jane. I had forgotten about that." Jester, uncomfortable, continued down the hallway to the Throne Room.


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's note: I am so sorry I have not posted anything in months! A lot has been going on but I'm back now so I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Disclaimer: I do not own JatD.

Chapter 9

Jane woke up the next morning in the mood to train. She got out of bed, brushed her hair, checked her clothes, and everything else that followed her routine. The mission two days away, Jane would prepare herself by training and studying; anything to get her ready for the challenges she would face.

Sir Theodore had explained the mission in more detail than when Gunther had told her when she visited him in his office after her confrontation with Jester the previous day. The old knight had told her, "You, myself, and Sir Ivon will patrol the woods and look for signs of the Dark Magic beyond the forest. We need to know how far this evil stretches before we take any action. The mission will most likely take two days."

"Why isn't Gunther joining us?" she had asked.

"We still need a knight left at the castle for security."

Jane had secretly doubted how much security Gunther alone would provide, but she was not to question Sir Theodore. She had simply replied, "I will be ready, Sir," and had took her leave.

After reflecting on the day before's events, Jane, ready, left her room and went down the stairs to the practice yard. She went over to where the wooden practice swords were kept and took one. Jane headed back over to the dummy, ready to fight her "enemy." She lifted her sword and struck the dummy. Her strike was not coordinated in the slightest bit, and the dummy came back at her in an awkward way before she could duck. Jane was pushed to the ground.

"Dummy beat you already?" she heard Gunther laugh. "I see you haven't woken up yet."

_So some days he will be nice and others he will be mean. Go figure_, she thought. "Hello, Gunther," she said, sarcastically. "Isn't it just a wonderful day?"

Gunther simply walked between her and the dummy, waving, and left the practice yard, heading towards the gardens.

Jane was relieved to see Jester enter the practice yard after Gunther left. "Good morning, Jane," he called.

"Morning, Jester," she called back, acknowledging he was there before she went to hitting the dummy again. Now getting the hang of it, Jane hit and blocked the dummy with the expertise of one who had been training for years, as she had. The pace of hitting and blocking became faster and faster, until the squire and the dummy were just moving blurs.

"Very good Jane, I am impressed," said Jester as he motioned for her stop. "May I?" he asked, pointing to her sword.

"Really?"

"Certainly," he said, taking the sword.

_Thank goodness Jester is in a better mood_, thought Jane.

Jester hit the dummy with the sword, though he betrayed enormous lack of ability from the awkward spot he hit the dummy. But the flexible boy did a flip, to be more extravagant than simply ducking, and landed before Jane's feet. "Was that good, lady knight?"

Jane clapped, praising, "Bravo." They were friends again.

Dragon had landed behind them, unnoticed.

"So, Jane, do you like the jingle-boy or do you like-like him?"

Jester's face turned bright red as he whirled around to face the towering dragon. Jane remained calm. She turned around and put one hand on her hip while the other held her sword. "What do you mean by that?" she asked. Jester backed up.

"You know, like smoke-swappers!"

Jane pretended not to remember the incident with Gunther last year. _So much for not lying_, she thought. "Smoke-what?"

Dragon gave an exasperated sigh and explained, "Remember a while back when you and Gunther liked each other?"

Jane, pretending to recall, said, "We did not like each other. And we still don't."

"Well you and jingle-hat-" Dragon paused as he did not see Jester. Jane turned back around as well. Jester had left.

Jester no longer being there, Jane and Dragon went on patrol. The embarrassed jester had fled to his room and stayed in it for quite a while, composing songs and wanting to be alone.

After the midday meal, in which Jester had not been present, Jane had gone off in search for her mother, for Jane had a pressing question to ask her. A question that Jane had been wondering about for years but had never wanted to ask.

She found her mother watching Princess Lavinia in the gardens. She gestured to her mother to step back, so the Princess would not hear their conversation. "Jane, if this is about the dress for the ball in a few weeks, then I will be as strict on it as last year. No gown, no ball."

"It's not about the ball, Mother," said Jane. "I need to ask you a question."

The Lady in Waiting waited, as she was used to doing, hence the name.

Jane took a breath of air and asked, "Who do you expect me to marry when I get older?"

The Lady in Waiting was very surprised by this question, for she had never thought her daughter to be one to think about marriage. "Someone of higher rank."

"High_er_?"

"Yes, now if you will excuse me, a have a little majesty to watch." Jane took her leave as her mother had implied, but as she left, she figured her mother had made more than one implication. _Higher?_ she thought. _Than what?_ She figured she knew. _Jester. Higher than Jester. Someone of higher rank than Jester._ Jane sighed, not knowing what else to do.

The next day was ordinary and routine. Jane practiced for hours as she listened to Smithy bang his hammer against the metal he was working on. Pepper was cooking, Rake was gardening, and Gunther was patrolling in the woods on horseback. Jane had seen Jester come and go through the practice yard, going and leaving his performance for the King. Jane had not spoken to him, though, for she could tell from his mood that he was in no mood to talk. _I hope he's not down again_, Jane had thought. She had been relieved the day before that they were acting like friends again. Midday came quickly and left quickly as well, for there was not much conversation. No one seemed to be in the mood to talk. Then Jane had returned to practicing for the hours until dinner, where she joined Jester, who did not speak at all. Pepper did not even ask him if his stomach was hurting when she saw that he was not eating. Jane went to bed in anticipation for the next day's mission.

Jane awoke in the morning full of energy as she completed her morning routine. Except it was different now, as she had to pack her things and prepare a horse. Sir Theodore had informed her to bring a sword, archery set, and enough food for a two day journey. Jane met with the horse she would be riding in the practice yard and began to take it to the gates, where Sir Theodore and Sir Ivon were waiting. She nodded to them as she came in their presence and the three knights began their journey to find the range of effects of the Dark Magic.

As Jane directed her horse through the gates and into the countryside, she had a realization. Smithy and Rake had gone to the market and Pepper would be in the kitchen all day. Gunther and Jester would be at the castle by themselves. Jane was overcome with worry, not just for Jester, but also for Gunther, as she had no idea what they would do to each other.

Gunther, realizing that he was alone with Jester, went up to Jester and slapped him on the back, saying with a menacing smile, "Looks like we have the castle to ourselves."

Jester could only groan.

The two decided that they would have a contest, so they would know which one of them was the best. Jane would never allow it, no matter how much they wanted to prove themselves to her, so they were content with finding out who was better now that Jane was away. They started with a sword combat. Gunther and Jester both took wooden swords from where they were kept and stood at either side of the practice yard. Gunther yelled, in a determined but cracking voice, "Charge!"

Jester yelled in a much weaker, much less determined voice, "Charge," as well.

Gunther hit his sword against Jester's with fury, almost causing the bell boy to lose the grip on his sword. Jester tried to lunge, but missed, and ducked Gunther's next blow. Jester, having hardly any experience with sword fighting, decided to use his dancing skills to his advantage. The jester leaped around Gunther, sometimes on one foot, and ducked and flipped and grabbed hold of Gunther's sword with his hand.

"Hey! If this was a real sword you would have cut yourself!"

Jester showed him that he was only holding the sword with two fingers on either side. "My hand would not be touching the blade, though," and he pulled at the sword. Gunther pulled back much harder, taking his sword from Jester's grasp. They continued the fight for another hour, and by the end, Jester was basically running away from Gunther, but doing so with skill as he danced toward and away from the squire.

"Well I can dance just as well as you."

"Show me," said Jester and he got his lute. As he started playing a tune, Gunther began dancing. It was not as bad as one might expect, for Gunther had learned footwork with his knight training. But his dance lacked something very important that Jester's had. Pizzazz. After the dancing was concluded, they decided to test themselves on jokes.

Gunther said, "Well how do you stop a fish from smelling?"

"Cut its nose off?"

Gunther sighed and they continued their contests for the rest of the day, trying to outdo each other and trying to find out who was the best. When the day was over, they still did not know who was the best and simply just went to bed, too tired to even eat.

The next day Jane returned, much to Jester's delight, for he did not want to "compete" with Gunther another day. But the news they were given was not good news. The Dark Magic was spreading.

Sir Theodore informed Jane and Gunther that they would be sent on another mission in five days, to find the source of the Dark Magic, but did not specify on the details of their trip. They did not question him, and figured they would be informed a few days later. After the competition with Gunther two days before, Jester had decided to practice against the dummy in secret. He wanted no one to know, for he was certain he would be ridiculed for it. Jester did not have what it took to be a knight, and they all knew it.

But Jester would not let that keep him from practicing as he had before Jane became a squire. An hour after breakfast, Jane had gone off on patrol with Dragon, Pepper and Rake were working, Smithy had gone to help Rake, and Gunther had gone to unload barrels of salt for his father. Jester was alone in the practice yard. He took a wooden sword and knocked at the dummy. It immediately flew back at him and knocked him to the ground. Jester got up and hit it again, in a different place. The dummy came directly back at him, but Jester was ready and hit it again. He realized that if he hit the dummy in certain places, it would cooperate more with him. Jester, getting the hang of the rhythm of the dummy's movements, was becoming more or less fluent with his lunges and blocks. Pride swelled inside of him as he realized he was actually using a sword. He continued hitting, ignoring the tiredness that was building up inside him. Excitement blossomed inside of him and Jester felt brave, even though fighting the practice dummy was not very frightening. He was starting to feel like a knight. And he had always wanted to be a knight. He had always wanted people to think he was brave. Unfortunately, there was no one there to admire his developing skill. Or so he thought.

"Jester!" he heard a familiar voice call his name from above. It was Sir Theodore.

Jester was immediately embarrassed. "I was just…"

Sir Theodore nodded and said, "You have always wanted a knight, haven't you?"

Jester nodded. "I'm not brave enough, though."

"Anyone can be brave."

Jester could not think of a reply so he simply nodded and waited for the old knight to continue speaking. "Would you like to see what it's like to be a knight?"

Jester perked up and asked, "Really?"

"Well, it would be a way to see what knighthood is like."

"I would like to have a chance if I could."

"Very well, then. I have a mission that I was going to give Gunther, but since it lacks in importance, I can give it to you."

"I would be most grateful."

"Come up, then," said Sir Theodore and he left the balcony to go to his office. Jester entered the knight's quarters, where he saw Sir Ivon napping, and went up the stairs to the office. Sir Theodore was sitting in his chair, holding a piece of paper. Jester nodded and took it from him. "This paper explains your mission. You will leave at midday, and I will have Sir Ivon follow you to ensure your safety. Be ready by the gates with enough food for two days and a horse saddled. You will bring a wooden sword, for I cannot trust your ability with a real one."

Jester was more excited than he had been in a long while. He ran to his room where he read the paper that instructed him of his mission:

_ Gunther,_

_Your mission will most likely take two days. Bring enough food for the journey and be prepared to sleep in the outdoors. You are to travel to a village a day's journey from here, in the northeast direction. There you will find the leader of the Local Knights of Kippernium, Sir John. You are to inform him of King Caradoc's decision regarding the imprisonment of intruders. They are to be seen by the King before being held captive as prisoners of war. Bring Sir John to the King if necessary. Take no longer than three days._

_ -Sir Theodore_

Once finished reading, Jester prepared his things and headed to the stables to get a horse. Smithy was very surprised when Jester informed him of his mission, and almost did not believe him. Smithy doubted Jester would lie about something like that, and he saddled Cleva. When it came time for Jester to mount the horse, he hesitated, for it had been a while since he had ridden a horse. He put his foot in the loop and pulled himself up. Jester had to remember for a moment how to direct he horse out of the stables, but quickly recalled and headed towards the gates, where Sir Ivon was waiting for him.

The jester suddenly regretted not telling Jane of his situation, for he wanted to impress her. He figured she would find out soon, though, and continued thinking of his excitement and disbelief. He was taken aback when he saw Sir Ivon's expression.

Sir Ivon clearly thought Jester more of a fool than ever before, and was also angry. If Gunther had been chosen to complete the mission, Sir Ivon would be able to stay at the castle, nap, and devise new pieces of weaponry that were destined to fail. But as Jester was now the one to complete the mission, Sir Ivon would have to work for two days when he figured it unnecessary. Jester felt very uncomfortable, but tried to ignore it, for he was performing the duty of a knight. And should act like one.

Meanwhile, Jane and Gunther were preparing for the mission they were to embark on in just an hour or two, and this time it would just be the two of them going.


End file.
